


Songbird

by eliniel



Series: Emet-Selch/WoL [14]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Bard - Freeform, Based on a song, F/M, Fluff, Music, Songbird - Freeform, hadestown - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-14
Packaged: 2020-08-23 17:08:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20246344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eliniel/pseuds/eliniel
Summary: Emet-Selch visits the WoL and bids her play a song for him.





	Songbird

**Author's Note:**

> This was a prompt I picked up by a friend. It's based on the song "Hey, Little Songbird" from the musical Hadestown.

I was sitting at my desk in my inn room, feather quill scratching against paper, as I tried my hardest to finish filling out the last of some paperwork that I’d let pile up on the table while I was off trying to defeat Lightwardens. I heard the familiar hum of a void portal behind me. Although I was slightly annoyed, a found my lips tilting upwards at the sound.

I looked over my shoulder as Emet-Selch walked through from wherever he’d been previously. He looked at me for a moment and I twisted further around in my chair to fully see him. Dramatically, he draped himself across the plush couch I’d had placed inside the room.

“Hero, I’m in need of a restorative,” he started, lazily waving one hand towards the piano in the corner. “Play me a song.”

I furrowed my brow at his request, not deigning to answer him, my eyes flicking to where he was motioning. I’d been avoiding it for as long as I could. Did I deserve to indulge in my own happiness when there were others that were suffering?

“What’s the matter, hm? Cat got your tongue?” I focused back on him.

“Couldn’t you just drink a tonic?”

“I find that music is the only thing that truly refreshes the soul. That and a good stage play.”

I sighed. The whims of this man were as strange as he was, though whenever he spoke, I felt as if I always wanted to do what he said. With a shake of my head, I stood from my desk and started making my way to the large instrument. I supposed satisfying his demands meant I wasn’t _exactly_ pampering myself. 

“Alright,” I agreed. “But just one. I have a lot of work to do and I’m already nearly running on empty.”

I slid onto the bench and lifted the fallboard. The sun’s rays made the white of the board glow. I ran my hands lightly over the keys as I marveled after the quality of the material. I had yet to play this piano after requesting it be brought here…I had barely a moment to myself, lately. It was as good a time as any. I placed my feet on the pedals, thinking about what song from my repertoire I should play for him.

Did he have a preference?

I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. His eyes were closed as he lounged on my couch, one long arm dangling over the side, gloved fingers trailing back and forth along the fibers of the rug. I exhaled through my nose and pushed on one of the white keys. The sound was clear and bright. It sent a shiver up my spine. While I usually preferred a harp in battle, the piano had always been my absolute favorite. 

I started with my melody, slow at first. As the song continued, the tempo picked up, fast enough that my hands were flying across the keys.

Suddenly, I felt an unexpected presence next to me and I hit a very loud, very wrong note. I froze, eyes wide, and stared down at my hands for a moment, then looked up, ready to admonish him for distracting me when he was the one who wanted me to play in the first place. But, the Ascian didn’t say a word as he sat down next to me. I moved over a little to make sure he had room, my words of reprimand lost on my tongue at the look on his face.

“Continue,” he ordered. He lifted his hands to the keyboard. I tilted my head, confused.

“You can play?”

“I have been alive for thousands and thousands of years, hero,” he said, his gold eyes sliding over my fingers, still poised on the keys. “It would be remiss of me not to pick up a few skills for self-entertainment, especially after so long alone.”  
My eyes dropped to my lap. I always forgot how long his existence had been. I couldn't even begin to imagine how lonely he’d been. I inclined my head a bit towards him and shoulder to shoulder, we began the song anew, his fingers gracefully, expertly hitting all the correct notes. 

By the time the song had ended, I had a soft smile on my face and I closed my eyes. How nice it felt, to have a skilled partner to play with, after being so long in silence, unable to pull any joy from playing. A twinge of guilt passed through me, just then, my smile falling. Should I really be letting myself feel this way?

The sharp snap of his fingers brought me back to reality and my eyes shot open. A book of sheet music appeared on the rack in front of us. I raised my eyebrow.

“I promised you only one song, Ascian.”

“Oh, do humor me a while longer, hero. It has been entirely too long since I’ve been able to enjoy myself.”

“Hmm,” I hummed, looking over the music he’d summoned. “I… suppose.”

And so we played, his song- soft and slow. Melancholic. My heart ached, for some reason, the longer it went on. He sighed as we made our way through the notes. 

“You play so beautifully,” he admitted, removing his hands from the board to listen to me play alone. “Your soul shines so brightly when you let the music carry you away, like a jewel in the sunlight. But why is it, hero, that I find your songs tinged with a sort of sadness?”

I looked up at him, my fingers slowing to a stop. His eyes were soft and sad as he watched me. My lips parted with a small, sharp intake of breath, surprised at how gently he was looking at me- looking _through_ me. I vaguely wondered if he knew how I felt- if he saw something of himself in me. He loved to simply watch. How long, exactly, had he been watching me? Were we...kindred spirits, in a sense?

Something shifted between us in that moment as we locked eyes, unmoving on the bench.

“It’s all written on your face, my dear,” he said, answering my unasked question.

I turned my back on him, biting my lip.

“I don’t…”

“Could it be you find it hard to enjoy yourself when you should, instead, be off playing hero, Warrior of Light? That you aren’t allowed even a small kernel of happiness?”

He leaned into me, getting closer to me than he already was. I felt the warmth of his chest against my back, but a chill ran up my spine as he drew his nose along the shell of my ear. 

“Save the world once and they expect you to save it again and again…”

I closed my eyes, refusing to face him. I had no answer for him, no fight in which to tell him he was wrong.

“Oh, my poor Warrior,” he cooed when I stayed silent. “No time to yourself, hm? No time for yourself...”

He pressed his cheek against the side of my head. I felt his chest rumble as he spoke. My stomach twisted and I learned further into him without thinking. He was intoxicating, and he was _right_.

“Look at those vultures,” he started again. I felt his head nod towards the window in front of us. I opened my eyes, surveying the outside. The people of the Crystarium bustled about. The Ascian wrapped his arms loosely around my waist, laying his hands flat against my stomach. “They’ve honed in on you, picking you clean until there’s naught left but a husk of the person you used to be…”

His hands slid down to my hips and dragged his lips down the length of my neck, stopping to lay a small, reverent kiss on my shoulder. A small whimper escaped my lips and he huffed a laugh, breath warm against my skin.

“Don’t forsake your own happiness for the sake of others, my hero.” My heart pounded in my ears at the feel of him against me. 

Slowly, I turned to face him. A soft smile had spread across his lips. He lifted one hand to my cheek and I closed my eyes, reveling in the sensation. He pressed his forehead against mine.

“Fall into me,” he breathed. “My little songbird.”

At his behest, I let myself go. I lifted my chin so my lips met his. He met me with a fervor I wasn’t expecting, but was willingly taken.

With a snap of his fingers, soft music filtered into the room as the piano played itself, low and sweet. He wrapped his arms around me, tightly, deepening the kiss.

My fall was much easier, much softer than I’d expected. It felt like an amazing place in which I could stay...forever.


End file.
